Sweet Livin'
by Roxie13
Summary: Jodie is Tommy's childhood friend, this is their life.


**I was listening to a few of my CDs the other day and this appeared in my head along with the twenty other screaming characters (They are taking over, is this what other fan fiction authors warn about? :P) This was sticking out like a sore thumb though and I had to write it down. Oh and for my purposes Thomas Hewitt (yep I'm using that one) has a father who leaves when he starts showing signs of deformity around puberty. Sigh, here goes nothing.**

"Tommy, wait up!" The small red headed girl called to her nine-year-old neighbor.

"What Jodie?" He sighed waiting for the seven year old. His voice was soft and not often used. She smiled and looked up into his deep brown eyes.

"Your mama tol' me that you was out here." She explained. "My parents came over for a visit and she said to come play with you." He shrugged in response. "What do you wanna do?"

"Dunno." He said sticking his hands in his pockets. She shifted and smoothed her skirt down.

"We could play a game." She suggested. "Tag or Leap Frog." Tommy just shrugged. In the living room of the house nearby their parents chatted.

"Look at those two, gonna have to keep an eye on that son of yours." Jodie's father chuckled to Tommy's. "Those two are gonna be like two love birds soon." The four adults laughed.

"Could show ya my fort." Tommy told the young girl on the porch. "Is up in the backyard."

"Ok!" She said excitedly. "Let's go." He led her around the house to the edge of the woods. Up in one of the trees was a fort. They both reached for the ladder at the same time.

"It's my fort, I go first." He explained.

"Ladies go first." She pouted.

"I'm bigger than you." He puffed out his chest. "I'll beat you up."

"Fine." She turned to go but he caught her arm.

"Wait, you can go up." He said quickly. He didn't have many friends as a result of his over protective mother.

"Thank you Tommy." She smiled. Then she walked over to the ladder and looked up. It was only a few feet up but it looked like a mile to her. "Um, it's really high."

"I go up all the time." He told her. "Me an' my uncle Charlie builded it fore he got in the Army." He nimbly climbed it and reached out a hand to help her up. She climbed up with his help and sat in the small room.

"Whoa, this is cool." She said looking around in wonder. "What should we play?"

"Dunno, could play army. Shoot all the Vietcong." He mimed shooting.

"Naw, I can't be a soldier." She smoothed her dress. "Ladies don't kill people."

"Could be a nurse." He amended. "An' save all th' people that get shot."

"We could play Knight and Princess." She interjected.

"What's that?" He asked.

"You, the Knight, have ta save me, the Princess, from evil." She explained.

"Sure." They set up the yard as a castle, the fort being the tower and Tommy fought off imaginary villains to save Jodie. After he defeated the 'dragon' (really just an old barrel covered with a ratty blanket and some scrap metal) He climbed the ladder to the fort, the 'tower'. "I saved ya, now what?"

"Ya gotta kiss me." She told him as he helped her down from the 'tower'.

"Why?" He asked.

"It's just what knights do." She sighed. "And I dare ya to." She grinned at her taunt.

"Ok." He attempted to quickly kiss her cheek and she giggled as she tapped his chest lightly and ran off.

"Tag you're it." She called over her shoulder.

"Hey, no fair!" He started running after her. She ducked and weaved through the obstacles they had set up together and he just burst through them. When he caught upo he tagged her.

"That… was fun." She panted.

"Jodie," Her mother called out. "It's time to go!"

"Coming Mama!" She yelled back. "Bye Tommy, I'll see ya soon." She quickly pecked him on the cheek and ran to her car. His hand rested on the spot as her car drove out of view and his own mom called him in for supper.

**Eh, Eh, Eh. How was it? Did you vomit? Cry? Laugh? TELL ME! Please….. Ahem, anyway I'll try to get up the next chapter soon but if you've been a fan for awhile you know me. Reviews are Roxie-Fuel. Nom nom nom. Later peeps!**


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